E vs I

[Fool]

I have these mad swings of extroversion and introversion. These "swings" can last from a couple hours to a week or two. I'll be the most out going person one day and the next I don't want anything to do with people. Of course it's a little more subtle than this but it illustrates my concern. I'm not sure how I should handle this, embrace it? My friends are getting irritated, and it has a toll on certain romantic relationships.

More info: According to the test in my siggy I am pretty much on the fence regarding extroversion and introversion. When I am in extroverted mode things seem to go my way; I really enjoy it. I'm not trying to say that I am not happy when I'm being introverted, just that extroversion feels more natural. But I may be just an introvert in denial, trying to make myself feel more social. Hmhmm...

 

[KazeCraven]

Sounds like social introvert to me.

Even disregarding the MBTI cognitive processes (by which you could be stimulated for various reasons about the conversations you have), introverts are characterized by an energy drain and thus feel a need to be away from people, regardless of how outgoing they are when around people.

So, in short, I think it depends on whether your "don't want anything to do with people" is about energy drain or just boredom with people. I think the latter is just a characteristic of ENTPs due to a need for idea-stimulation.

 

[Fool]

Sounds like social introvert to me.

That sounds so...entrapping.

On a lighter note, when I do have those characteristic withdrawals from society I do not feel rejuvenated. The whole time I'm wishing I actually AM doing something with somebody, however, I do not usually take any action to make that possible. I'm not sure why though, whether that be because I actually do need some time alone, or whether it's an insecurity of mine, or whatever else that may be. Finding the cause of that might possibly be the root of my problem.

 

[KazeCraven]

Entrapping? I'm not familiar with that word, but I assume my phrase was deficient in some way.

And yeah, the bottom line is that we probably know a lot less about whether you are an introvert that you do. On the other hand, you could just discard the MBTI model entirely, go for the Big 5, and conclude that you are somewhat less extroverted than average, but not overly so.

I do wish scientists would hurry up and figure out how the average brain works so that we can start investigating individual differences in a more substantive way.

 

[Fool]

Hmm "entrapping" wasn't quite the word I was looking for. I meant that it would suck to be a "social introvert". lol. I've been trying to rid myself of the assumption that the MBTI is a concrete method. Any suggestions?

 

[Apotheosis]

I'm the same way but to a greater extreme. During much of middle school, I was very introverted, preferring to sit in a cubicle and study physics or pre-calculus or whatever had caught my interest. In high school, I was much more extroverted. I spent most of my time hanging out with friends, playing football and basketball, participating in school and church activities, and getting girls' numbers. Once I moved to college, my pre-highschool intellectualism and introversion kicked in again. And naturally, I stopped going to church.

I don't honestly think that I become "drained" when I interact with people; often, I feel quite energized. Perhaps I do need to recharge my batteries, but not nearly to the extent of other introverts I know. No one has ever accused me of lacking ambition and I suspect that my drive to bring my knowledge and ideas to society is much stronger than the average INTP. However, I lack any deep-seated need to interact with people and have absolutely no qualms about being a recluse, so I'm guessing that I have a higher tendency towards introversion.

My Ti and Ne appear at war for dominance and I think I come off very ENTPish in person, but plenty of INTPs are only a few percentage points away from ENTPism and vice versa. If you're an INTP with a 55% preference for introversion, you're still technically an INTP, but you will find plenty of common ground with an ENTP that happens to have a 45% preference for introversion. It's all relative.

As KazeCraven alluded to, it's not unusual for ENTPs to appear to be introverts, or even be socially introverted. Ti and Ne are certainly not the most social functions, and I wouldn't put too much faith in the MBTI as a means to generalize how people act and interact.

 

[BitRogue]

I'm not even remotely going to try and guess what your typing is. However, to depict an example of two (possibly extreme) opposites on this scale, today as been a pretty stressful day in the office and I've been having to discuss issues with the client project managers and our support staff in the States. This constant having to talk to people about their problems and idiotic requests is seriously getting to me. My colleague who is coordinating a lot of whats happening on the project has been working closely with me throughout the day. When I go back to my hotel just now, Im just going to shut myself up, order room service and read my book for the rest of the evening and hope I dont see anyone until tomorrow. As you may have guessed, I am in 'I' in a big way and I can't wait to be on my own for a while. My colleague, who as been almost non stop in meetings and on the phone, is now heading off to have an evening out with some of the other team at some bar or pub. As you can probably guess, he is a good example of an 'E' .

I can do the bar drinking thing, no problem, Im not always antisocial. But somedays, Ive just really had enough of being around human beings and constantly having to think at everyone else's (somewhat degenerative) mental level and I just need to get off this planet FAST. My colleague is also quite happy reading and spending time on his own, but if there is anything social related, he's there without fail.

Just to put the E vs I into a bit of real life context.

 

[shadowdrums4]

I'd say you're Ti and Ne are pretty equally developed regardless of which one is dominant. I have one extroverted friend who others would have guessed was an introvert, but as I started reading things around here, I realized she was an extrovert. I came to that conclusion because in class when she was bored she drew pictures, usually about what was going on around her. I took that as extroversion because it had to do with the outside world. (I hope I'm right on this one, feel free to correct me)

INTPs can be outgoing, and with developed Ne/Fe can have less of the draining effects. I also read somewhere that what your describing is very common in a Ti/Ne or Ne axis. It said something like Ti wants to analyze things and Ne is more child/free spirit-like and if you've been doing either for too long, you want to do the other. I'm still figuring all this out though.

I'm pretty much the same way, I want to be around people and most days I want to talk to my favorite people. (online if possible) There are some people I never get tired of, the difference is I have a lower tolerance for strangers, especially ones I consider stupid. Some days I just need to sit back and evaluate everything. I don't really know if I'm happier in either position, but the people I like to talk too are people I'm bouncing ideas off of. I think the main difference between an ENTP and an INTP is that an ENTP really wants to change things, seeing how they can be better, the INTP does this too but wants to understand things more. (Again feel free to correct me)

 

[bloozie]

I have the same problem with my Ne/Ti... More of a confusion and how dominant the functions are. After reading what you guys posted here, I thought that perhaps we should be thinking of it in a different way? People that I know mention that I am an outgoing guy. I always have a smile on whenever I talk to people, I'm usually joking around, and I essentially like people in general because everyone is interesting. But, during the time that I am around people, I feel energized... I'm basically everywhere in a room talking to people and at the same time working on a project... but at the end of the day I'm exhausted... Perhaps not from the interactions, but from what I was working on in general?

I know that the main difference between E vs I is that a person will often be energized or drained after interacting with people... So, I was wondering if we should focus on the type of interaction and other variables such as the environment? First, perhaps the interaction when dealing with people is of the emotional type? Maybe you're talking to someone about relationships or random jibber jabber. Or maybe it's something about solving a problem and brainstorming? With the former interaction, I would inevitably be exhausted at the end of the day because I'm not equipped with understanding how relationships work. As for the latter interaction, I would be energized... even after the brainstorming session with someone, I would still be running ideas through my mind all through the night. How I see it is that it takes more energy just to think about how relationships work than it does to brainstorm.

So, back to E vs I...

 

[KazeCraven]

@Fool: Suggestions? Sure. Focus on the fact that MBTI is, at its core, pseudoscience. Then read about personality theory and come upon your own opinion, perhaps drawing upon MBTI to do so. So long as you only have one framework to work with, it probably won't matter how 'concrete' you think the model should be.

About E vs I: personally, I also found my high school days to be a bit more extroverted, probably due to heightened testosterone levels; more objectively I've noticed that nearly every time someone mentions feeling drained and cites a specific example (talking INTPs here) , it's almost always something that reeks of Fe. Small talk, kissing up, putting on a show, etc. (Don't get me wrong, Fe is very good stuff to develop. I just don't like focusing on any of that, as my caricatures probably indicated) Hell, if I didn't care about other people's thoughts/feelings I'd never get drained from interaction. Maybe that's just me and my terrible self-consciousness (even now that I'm not shy).

My point, then, is that because we are (or INTPs are) introverts, it makes sense that no matter what happens, we'll habitually go back to our lonesome. Any desire to socialize is just our being human, but we naturally strike a balance. What's draining is the use of the inferior function, Fe. Socialization without excessive use of Fe (we actually use it to an extent every time we communicate) is perfectly sustainable.

There. That should cover the main issue.

 

[nexion]

Hmm "entrapping" wasn't quite the word I was looking for. I meant that it would suck to be a "social introvert". lol. I've been trying to rid myself of the assumption that the MBTI is a concrete method. Any suggestions?

Suggestions? Yes, I believe I have one. It's not. It's simply not a concrete method; more an abstract idea, that can be seen and felt, but not really understood.

It doesn't work because the test essentially gives you hypothetical situations and asks for your end-all response to said situations. Nothing is ever that cut-and-dry in real life. That's why you answer the questions with a mentality of "most often" or "most likely." The test is merely a guideline, or more like to show one's tendencies. There is so much to the human psyche and personality that I doubt any number of tests, data, or information could truly describe it.

 

[TriflinThomas]

Introverted v. Extroverted

Am I really introverted? I've danced on stage in the Quad at my school and I'm going to be in the school prom fashion show. I feel like those aren't things that and INTP would do.

 

[teeandcee]

Re: Introverted v. Extroverted

I've read that the test for introversion vs. extroversion is how you feel after socializing. Introverts need time to recover whereas extroverts don't.

 

[Fukyo]

Threads are merged. Please check if there are already same or similar threads on the forum before starting a new one.

 

[TriflinThomas]

That makes sense. My best friend (entj) went up with me; I was super tired after and she was totally pumped.

 

[Honor]

Re: Introverted v. Extroverted

I've read that the test for introversion vs. extroversion is how you feel after socializing. Introverts need time to recover whereas extroverts don't.

I don't know about this, though. I'm pretty sure I'm an extravert but when I'm around people I don't have much in common with or don't find interesting, it can be draining to spend long periods of time with them. I will want to get away after something like that happens. It's a different story when I'm around someone who I think is fun.

I've also noticed that I much less likely to be drained by group social situations than one-on-one social situations, and I'd much rather meet new people and have comparatively superficial conversations with them than hang out with the same person over and over again and know every intimate detail of their life.

 

[intpz]

The fact that you are asking here if you are an extrovert or an introvert, and the reasons/descriptions you provided us, means that there is some underlying cause, something that you think and that correlates with what you should be thinking. An example of that would be an introvert in denial.

My personal experience, as from a 100% introvert, rated according to the same site that you are rated at:

I am alone most of the time, I don't have any friends, nor do I talk to anybody. I'm okay with that, however from time to time, maybe once every month or two, I feel the need to talk to someone, which is quite natural. I don't most of the time though. However if I do get to talk to somebody, say a class-meeting, if the guy's smart (only one somewhat smart guy was our class), I can talk a lot, like a real ENTP. I never want to go out with a lot of people and all, however I do like to talk a lot, give my ideas out. I often want to express my ideas and thoughts to other people, however I don't want any interaction with them, unless they'd be smart and interesting. But even in that case, I believe I would want to express my thoughts to other people without having any other interaction with them.

 

[lenh]

That sounds so...entrapping.

On a lighter note, when I do have those characteristic withdrawals from society I do not feel rejuvenated. The whole time I'm wishing I actually AM doing something with somebody, however, I do not usually take any action to make that possible. I'm not sure why though, whether that be because I actually do need some time alone, or whether it's an insecurity of mine, or whatever else that may be. Finding the cause of that might possibly be the root of my problem.

For a while I had the same feeling, I wanted to stay home, but in the same time a felt I needed to go out. With some researching and reflecting about myself I reached a conclusion.
The other part that needed to go out was just my heavy conscience. I thought that staying home and not wanting to socialize was some kind of "freak" thing.